The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan ruling parties to allow new fighter jets to be exported
TOKYO - Japan's ruling parties are including provisions in their security policy blueprint that would allow the export of next-generation fighter jets to other countries, despite the country's strict regulations on international arms sales, a source familiar with the matter said Wednesday.
The Liberal Democratic Party, led by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and its junior coalition partner, Komeito, said the pros and cons of exporting defense apparatuses equipped with lethal arms needed further discussion.
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Japan reveals guidelines to urge firms to develop defense technology
TOKYO - The Japanese government on Wednesday revealed guidelines for the development of its defense technology with the aim of urging private firms and research institutes to join in creating cutting-edge equipment such as insect-sized robots and self-reparable materials.
The guidelines, which gave examples of technologies expected to be put to practical use in a decade's time, were drawn up based on three key documents on security policies updated last December, including the long-term National Security Strategy.
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Belarus confirms arrival of Wagner's Prigozhin after Russia uprising
TOKYO - Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner mercenary group, arrived by air in Belarus on Tuesday following a short-lived military uprising in Russia, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko was quoted as saying by the country's state media.
Lukashenko, who is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and who brokered a deal with Prigozhin to halt the rebellion which broke out on Friday, said the country will provide security guarantees to the Wagner Group founder and his fighters, the Belarusian Telegraph Agency reported.
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Baseball: Ohtani leads Angels to win with 10 strikeouts, 2 homers
ANAHEIM, California - Shohei Ohtani delivered a spectacular two-way performance Tuesday to propel the Los Angeles Angels to a 4-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox, striking out 10 while extending his MLB home run lead with a pair of long bombs.
Ohtani (7-3) surrendered a solitary run on four hits and a pair of walks over 6-1/3 innings on the mound, backed by his 3-for-3 night at the plate that included his 27th and 28th home runs and two walks.
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Taiwan pledges to work with U.S. to safeguard Indo-Pacific
TAIPEI - Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen met Wednesday with a U.S. congressional delegation in Taipei, where she pledged the island's dedication to working closely with the United States in safeguarding peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
"Taiwan is on the frontline of defense of democratic values. We will continue to work hand-in-hand with the United States in such areas as economics and national defense," Tsai told the nine-member bipartisan delegation led by Mike Rogers, chair of the House Armed Services Committee.
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Japan currency diplomat warns of action against excessive forex moves
TOKYO - Japan will respond "appropriately" to excess volatility in foreign exchange markets, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said Wednesday, calling recent yen moves "one-sided."
With the yen falling below 144 relative to the U.S. dollar, Japan's top currency diplomat Masato Kanda also said the government is keeping tabs on market developments with "a sense of increased urgency."
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North Korea raps Japan over abduction symposium, repeats issue resolved
BEIJING - North Korea has criticized Japan over a symposium it will host with the United Nations and other countries on Pyongyang's past abductions of Japanese nationals, reiterating the issue has been resolved, state-run media said Wednesday.
"It has been completely, finally and irreversibly settled, thanks to our magnanimity and sincere efforts," Ri Pyong Dok, a researcher at the North Korean Foreign Ministry's Institute for Japan Studies, said in an article issued Tuesday, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
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Japan prefecture ordered to pay damages over fatal 2017 avalanche
UTSUNOMIYA, Japan - A Japanese court on Wednesday ordered the Tochigi prefectural government and a high school athletic federation to pay 290 million yen ($2 million) in damages to the families of five people killed in an avalanche during a mountaineering course in March 2017.
Three instructors responsible for delivering the course were also defendants in the lawsuit, which sought 385 million yen, but the Utsunomiya District Court dismissed the claims against them.
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Video: Anti-U.S. rally in Pyongyang
